Jodhpur: At least 50 killed in temple stampede

Published: Tuesday, September 30, 2008, 8:32 [IST]

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Jaipur, Sep 30: At least 50 people were killed and several injured in a stampede during the Navratra Stapana ceremony at the ancient Chamunda Mata Temple in the Mehrangarh fort in Jodhpur on Tuesday, Sep 30 morning. 10,000 people had gathered at the Chamunda temple in Jodhpur's centuries-old hilltop Mehrangarh Fort at the start of a major Hindu festival when the incident occurred at 6:15 am.

A large number of devotees thronged the temple for the ceremony when suddenly the scattering happened around 0600 hrs. Official reports reaching here put the death toll at 50. Jodhpur Divisional Commissioner Kiran Soni Gupta said 10 bodies had so far been recovered. The toll was likely to go up, she said. The injured were rushed to various hospitals, she added. "We have news of at least 40 people dead and more than 150 people injured," Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria told reporters.

She said the stampede was caused by the collapse of a wall leading up to the temple, which is a popular tourist attraction. Several deaths in the collapse then sparked a larger stampede.